Nightie
by xStaticxTelevisionx
Summary: Julius can't take it anymore. She has no concept of modesty, and though it is entirely innocent in nature...she can't keep doing this to him. T! Very, very T!
1. Chapter 1

**I know it's not an update, but I wanted to write something else. I recently got a demo of the game, so now I know the proper geography and appearance for everything. I thought that the country had been split up into quarters, not three parts and a center. What do I know? xD But yes, welcome back to my 2:00 am ramblings, and please, R &R :D**

 **-Static**

 **/*\**

The workshop was a quiet place, if one could overlook the methodical _tick, tock-_ ing of clocks that numbered at too many to count. It was a small area. It contained a desk and a little loft bed, with another work space directly under it, built into the frame. There were books splayed everywhere, even on the floor, and occasionally the odd mechanism of random clock parts built into something else. The curtains were drawn, and a standard lamp was the only source of illumination as the man worked and worked some more.

There was a certain meditative quality to be found within the work. For him it was almost like art, if art was ever meant to be so black a practice. Instead of paints and brushes or paper and pen, he used cogs and gears to create his masterpieces. Once the trinkets - so deceptive in appearance - were fully functional once more, he could turn them into people.

That could be arguably the fun part. Or the pretentious part. It really depended on his mood.

There weren't just books and half-built machinery pieces scattered about the tiny workshop, battling for space with the bookshelves and table, but also sheafs of paper, all containing sketches of people.

It wasn't like he could recreate the same person over and over again. Sure, many of the faceless looked alike - he didn't have enough time to make each one as individual as he might want to - but he couldn't just create them all the same. How annoying would that be?

He was working on one such sketch when the door creaked. He didn't look up, and simply continued his progress. He knew who it was, and unlike just about anyone else in Wonderland, she was always a welcome presence.

Not that he would ever let her know that.

The person on the paper was coming out surprisingly well this time. It was a female, not tall, but not freakishly short, perfectly petite. She wasn't particularly well-endowed - he always felt so awkward deciding such things for people. He often just let the pen skitter across the paper as it may and was done with it - but she wasn't horribly flat either. He imagined her skin to be the palest of ivories, and her hair long and straight. It would be a lighter color too. Not blond, but not brown either, a color that could never truly be determined, as it would always differ in the angle of the-

"Julius?" A voice questioned, ringing through the air, breaking the rhythmic _tick, tock_ of the assorted clocks.

"What?" He growled, looking up, pencil pausing. His nasty demeanor was not sincere in the least of course, but the pretense was important. It needed to be perfect down to a fault, exactly as it had been when he first met her and did not know her yet. He would not let this woman - just barely exiting girlhood - know just how much he liked her. Just how beautiful he found her. Just how much he _wanted_ her...

If she ever figured it out, it would be his complete and utter undoing. If she found out she would leave.

She didn't view him as she did the other men. She thought him safe. She didn't think of him in a threateningly masculine manner, because he was always adamant that he was not interested in other people, women especially.

The fact of the matter was, the other men wanted her in the same way he did, and that scared her, because none of them had ever been shy in their propositions. She thought far higher of him, which simultaneously pleased and frustrated him. The others had been too overwhelmingly mannish for her in a manner that made her feel afraid and uncomfortable. That's not even mentioning how pushy they were. Peter refused to hear her denials of him as her lover. Ace wouldn't stop trying to get her alone in a tent. Julius refused to even _think_ about the bloody Hatter (and no that was not meant to be a clever pun). At the same time however, as much as he detested their methods and the way they treated her, he couldn't deny that their ideas had worked in some ways. She viewed his rivals as _men_. Men that could be potential prospects.

As much as he feared the consequences of such a revelation, he wanted her to notice him as a _man_ and not just her landlord.

As he'd been lost in these musings, looking at her face with his own perfectly schooled into it's usual state of irritation, she had raised an eyebrow at him. It was unusual of him to be so snappy with her. He was usually a much more patient person. However, he had been working an awful lot lately. Ace wouldn't stop coming in with more and more clocks...

He needed rest, but knowing it would be futile to try and make him leave the desk, she simply presented him with a cup of coffee instead.

"Here," she stated softly, "I brought you some coffee. I would stay up and watch you work some more, but honestly-" she cut herself off with a yawn, "I'm simply too exhausted. There's more in the kitchen flask if you need it." And then a little quieter, "Assuming it's decent this time." Julius relaxed his death grip on the pencil, his gaze finally turning to the mug she had placed just above the edge of his newest project.

"Thank you, Alice." He murmured. The words felt strange on his tongue. He was a bitter loner with few friends, and commonly hated by the rest of the nation. Manners weren't exactly something he needed to use with other people - they never had manners with him. Alice was the only person he ever bothered being polite too, and though he said things to her he said to no one else, she remained too oblivious to notice, so it was fine.

He moved to take a sip, and thought over in his mind. Well, it was definitely an improvement from yesterday...

Or he was just getting used to drinking bad coffee.

"Eighty-five." He decided. It wasn't worth that many points, but he knew the girl tried. The coffee-making process was difficult for her, as she didn't much care for the beverage, so she didn't really know how it was supposed to taste. Alice only put in the effort because she knew he liked it, and because so few people showed him legitimate kindness, he wouldn't let that go unappreciated.

She beamed at him and turned towards the loft bed, the only one in the tower.

"If you're going to stay up, I'm going to sleep." She announced, and Julius had to force himself to stare down at the drawing and bid her a soft goodnight before shutting off his lamp so that she could sleep. It was night, and though he was particularly fond of it, it made his companion sleepy. He lit a candle and tried not to glance her direction.

Even though he had asked her on multiple occasions - alright, so maybe it was more along the lines of scolding - to stop wearing that tiny little nightgown, she still paraded herself around in it come bedtime. She didn't even have the decency to wear a dressing gown. It left so much skin unprotected. Most of her legs, her arms, her shoulders, and it absolutely did not help that the damned thing was white.

If he caught a glimpse of her in it in just the right light, he could almost see _through_ it. Of course, she was too innocent to see the issue with her nightwear. It was comfortable, so why shouldn't she wear it? That was her reasoning, but for the Clockmaker...it was as if the _real_ deities of Wonderland were testing him. More than once he'd wondered if it was some sort of punishment for his arrogance. It was all to often that he'd look at his fellow Role-Holders and think to himself,

 _I am surrounded by_ _morons._

And now he had been left no better than the rest of them.

One peek. One peek out of the corner of his eye would mean nothing. It was perfectly fine for a man to appreciate a woman's beauty. It was a natural human thing for him to do, and since he _was_ human, it was no issue as long as she didn't catch him looking. Right?

 _Wrong._

Right at the moment his gaze had flickered to her, a gust of wind had blown through the curtains. _Why is the window open?_ But the thought had barely any time to register before he took notice of the girl. The breeze had lifted her nightdress ever so slightly as she had started up the ladder, but it was just enough for him to notice the extravagant curve that led from her legs up to her back, and just how dark her undergarments were against her skin.

 _Dear God, why?_ Was the thought looping through his mind at a million miles an hour, but it had taken him several moments to realize.

"Julius, why are you staring at me?" She questioned, tilting her head and starting to sound uneasy. His eyes immediately flicked to her face, and she saw...something, in his eyes. The emotion shining through the sapphire depths of his eyes was something she was completely unable to identify, and it worried her. It worried her even more when he pushed the chair away from his desk and then proceeded to grab her wrist and back her up against the table under the bed.

It had happened. It had finally happened. Julius had snapped. He couldn't take it anymore. For a moment he didn't care if this chased her away, so be it, he couldn't deal with the torment any longer. Then he took a deep breath, and let it out, Alice caged between him, his arms, and the desk.

"Alice," He started, trying to choose his words carefully. "Do you recall all the times I've asked you to find something else to sleep in? Or to at least invest in a dressing gown?"

"...Yes..." she answered, trying to determine the cause of Julius's strange attitude. What was happening? She always thought he'd been teasing when he made those protests. He'd never behaved like _this._

"Have you ever wondered _why_ I make those requests?" He growled, taking a moment to subtly lean in and take in the scent of her shampoo.

"Not particularly." She answered hesitantly. He looked her straight in the eye.

"Because, I am a _man_." He looked at her meaningfully. It was clear from the nervous and confused look in her eye that she still wasn't getting it. "If we switched places, it would be as if I slept in nothing but pants." Her eyes widened.

"Oh," she answered in understanding, and she turned a little red. "I see, it makes you feel awkward. Why didn't you just say so? I'll buy new nightclothes tomorrow." He sighed in half-relief and half-frustration.

She hadn't understood what he had really meant. However, that was okay. She wasn't going to leave, nor was she going to wear that evil dress anymore. She was going to buy new pajamas, and make this situation a little easier on him.

Yet the way she had looked at him before stepping back to the bed...that had made him feel a little better.

He hated people, but not her. He desired her in ways that he thought impossible for himself, and that only made him adore her even more. It gave him a sense of normalcy, and though he behaved as though he were content in his Role...it was something they _all_ longed for at some point.

He knew he could never tell her though. As she ascended the ladder to sleep, he knew that he could never ask her to return his affections. He was the Mortician. His dealings were with the dead, and he carried their secrets. Though he looked harmless enough, he would pose danger to her sooner or later. It would be so very unfair of him to ask that she create an inseparable bond with that.

At the same time...she lived with him. She cleaned the tower, she cooked his meals and she brought him coffee. She allowed him to view her in a state of undress that no other man of Wonderland would ever hope to see without physical damage. She was even sleeping in his bed.

As Julius finished his sketch of the new faceless, he shook his head. Such thoughts would lead him nowhere.

As much as he felt the heat of desire whenever he looked upon her, as much as he might tantalize himself with thoughts of acceptance...he wasn't good for her. It meant nothing if she was good for him, but he was damage for her. However he was human. How could he expect himself to remain so noble?

No, no he could not pursue her, that was not his right...and yet...if she might want him back...No, no no. That was not a train of thought worth entertaining. He forced himself to focus, and so resignedly, he continued with his work into the night, the clocks ever ticking away. He couldn't be with Alice, and though he kept telling himself this...

He couldn't stop himself from looking thoughtfully up at the bed.

 **/*\**

 **I feel like Julius puts up with a lot of crap from not only the other Role-Holders, but Alice as well. She's kind of a *bleep* in the game. What little I've seen anyway. R &R pleeeeeeaaaaaase! :D**

 **-Static**


	2. Chapter 2

**I kind of liked this one-shot. So why not a little add-on?**

 **-Static**

 **/*\**

There was nothing quite like the sensation of her voice gasping in his ear in the complete and utter darkness of the night. The way she would squeak when his fingers blindly ghosted over her waist, or the way she would hum at the soft kisses he leisurely placed on her neck and lower. There was absolutely nothing like knowing, whatever he did, the results were always positive. Quite a treat, for his ever-constant cynicism to be rendered so incorrect. Though she compared him and his Role to the deities of her own world, _this_ was the time that truly made him feel like a god. He knew each and every centimeter of her body perfectly. He could make it twitch and writhe and arch into him as he so pleased. The ever cagy Outsider, suspicious of all around her, as skittish as a fox, and probably the trickiest person to win over... he had somehow managed to capture her elusive affections. She was as much his as he was hers. She now allowed him to do whatever he wanted with her, and she did not seem too displeased with the development either.

Then suddenly, under the cover of the blankets with him, she started calling his name, the three syllables ringing through his mind with each of her ever-louder pants. That meant whatever he was doing, she wanted more. And so he continued, until her voice started changing. At first it was soft and sweet, pleading with him for something. Then, to his complete and utter confusion, it took on an irritated edge. She was no longer panting, and then she shoved at his chest and simply glared up at him as if he'd done something to offend her greatly. That was when the panic started to settle in and he took his hands off the skin of her bared waist.

What was wrong?!

"Julius, wake up!" And with a _snap_ of something across the back of his head, his eyes flew open. He had warped from his bed during the night period, to find himself pillowing his head on his arms at his desk, blinking into the noonday sun, with a rather unpleasant cramp in his neck. As he rolled his head around, trying to make the discomfort ease up, he felt a small bit of disappointment well up in his chest. He leaned back in his chair and sighed in not-entirely-feigned annoyance.

Of course, it hadn't been real.

Just another dream.

He returned his attention to the girl in front of him. She was glaring down into his irritated gaze with a rolled-up newspaper in her hand - no doubt the object she'd used to smack him - and he narrowed his eyes at her. It didn't matter that he liked her, he would not put up with one such insult.

"So you see it fit to treat me as a misbehaving dog?" he growled, the building aggravation creating something of a "dark aura" around his person. It created a look on his face that would send even Ace back a step or two, but she was not in the least bit fazed.

"Only if it makes some sort of impression." she responded easily, glaring right back at the Clockmaster. "If it means you'll listen." she mumbled, looking away, knowing it was futile.

When Alice had woken that time period, she immediately went on with her daily routine. Of course she had seen her roommate at his desk with his eyes closed, but sometimes it was the only break he took. It had been his compromise. He would do as she asked and turn away from the clocks at intervals, but he would still remain at his desk so that he might resume his duties the second he was allowed to. Since she thought he had gotten plenty of rest, she disregarded the incident and took a shower, combed her hair, changed her clothes, and then she made breakfast. She hadn't been particularly worried over her landlord this time, as she had made him promise to get some sleep on the sofa, as he insisted she remain in the bed. He had sworn that he would actually do something that might benefit his overall health.

Upon entering the room with a tray of hot food and coffee, she found him still in the same position at the desk. It had become crystal clear. He had obviously not complied with her easy and simple request. She really couldn't be blamed if she had gone for the newspaper.

When she had finally gotten him to sit up and remove his glasses, she saw two rectangles around his eyes and a bridge across his nose. The images were agnrily red and imprinted on his face. Further proof that he had not kept his word. If he had been that sleepy, the sofa was literally two steps away. It wouldn't take four seconds for him to sit up and go back to his desk.

The situation forever perplexed and upset Alice. Why did he refuse to take care of himself? If he fell ill or got injured, then wouldn't he be unable to fix the clocks? She knew that - like all the other idiots in this world - he did not value his life, but considering his terrifyingly loyal work ethic, it didn't make sense. What was the rhyme to his reason?

He did not respond, and he simply continued glaring at her, with his arms crossed. It didn't take her long to notice the pink tint gracing his cheeks, or the way his lips turned down in a frown. That happened sometimes when he woke up, like he was especially annoyed with her and wanted her to leave as soon as possible. It was like she had interrupted an especially good dream.

Julius had never felt more irate in his life. It frustrated him to no end that this woman refused to notice him as anything but her boss and landlord, but now for her to actually take disciplinary action against him? In his own home?

"If you ever hit me with a newspaper again, I'm throwing you out." To this she gave an unladylike snort,

"Like you'd ever throw me out." she retorted, half to herself as she pushed the tray closer to him across the desk.

Unwilling to acknowledge his bluff, he chose to remain silent and started eating. Then he realized she was still there. For a moment he was puzzled, until he remembered. Oh right, the coffee. He sipped and recited her score - always lower than she'd have liked - then watched as she left, slightly deflated. Several seconds more, and he could faintly hear the sound of the Tower's front doors shutting.

She had gone adventuring once again, interacting with Wonderland's residents in order to fill up the vial. She still wanted to go home, and despite the wants his dreams brought up, he encouraged her to leave.

Wonderland - in spite of what the incubus showed her - was not a pretty place. Sure, the illusions looked appealing enough, but they were chipped. Once the observer got to picking at the cracks, it would not take long to see the ever-dark reality. She had meaning in her world, the potential for happiness. If she remained here...

She would become a pawn in the game, just like everyone else.

/*\

Though he was more than reluctant to admit it, Julius was starting to get worried. Alice had been gone for more than three time periods, nearly eighteen hours. Wonderland wasn't that big, what could have taken her so long?

He shook off the thought. She would be fine. Though they didn't exactly have the best manners, the Role-Holders liked her. They would keep her safe.

And yet a voice in the back of his head told him otherwise.

He shoved it away and continued fixing the clock. She was fine, she would return soon, and that was all there was to it. He was going to continue the inner mantra when he heard the door open, and he breathed a small sigh of relief.

 _See?_ He told himself, _Everything is fine._ That was when he heard her voice.

"Ace, I said no." So Ace had returned with yet more clocks?

"But Alice," the knight immediately protested, "It would be so much fun. Camping isn't that bad." His voice was light and airy as always but...Julius had known him long enough to know when something was off, even from listening to their conversation from such a distance.

"I said no." She repeated. Was that...fear in her voice? "I remember what happened last time I got stuck in a tent with you." she growled.

What happened last time?

Then Alice gave out a surprised shriek, and so Julius decided it was time to intervene. He left the office and treaded down the stairs to see...Ace. Cornering Alice against a wall. She was trying to defend herself, her arms crossed in front of her, doing the best she could to ward off the knight. He started to bend down, easily resisting the pressure of Alice's arms trying to push him away, not listening as she yelled for him to get away. As angry as the Clockmaker felt at his closest friend, he also had to feel somewhat smug.

Alice didn't want him.

"Ace." He called, breaking off the interaction. "What are you doing? Stop harassing Alice and give me the clocks." To absolutely no one's surprise, Ace only turned and smiled.

"But we're having a moment here."

"No we're not!" She protested, continuing to fight, but both men ignored her.

Ace knew Julius held an interest in the Foreigner, and Julius knew that Ace wanted to get her alone in a tent for various reasons, not entirely virtuous. However, though the knight was not nearly as emotionally invested in her, he knew the Clockmaker was. The only thing that was stopping Julius was his sense of nobility. He thought that Alice shouldn't have to be with a Wonderlandian man, that she should not waste her life for a replaceable person. However, he was not taking into account the fact that Alice would make her own choices. _She_ was responsible for her life, not him.

His friend needed to be a little more selfish. At least in this instance.

"You don't want her," Ace goaded, "So why not just let me try my luck?"

Julius knew exactly what the damned knight was doing. He also knew how to get him to back off.

"Don't you have a meeting with the Queen?" The knight's eyes narrowed, but inside he was amused. It wasn't often that Julius broke out the Role card. There was always the risk that Ace might get upset and draw his sword, and since Julius really hated to fight...

Alice really was important.

This time, Ace calmly retreated. He knew that this time, Julius had been hoping for a rise, to distract him from the Foreigner. This particular game, he would win.

"...I do."

"Then get going."

Ace, though a bit irked by the mention of the old hag, was satisfied. With that one phrase, that one warning, he knew that Julius was going to be obsessing over it for the rest of the night.

If Alice still let him see her in that tiny white nightgown, it would take very little to make him completely snap. The knight peacefully left, hoping that the Clockmaker would finally make a move and stop with the ridiculousness that was him trying to be "noble".

/*\

Once again, Alice was getting tired. This time, it was a day period, and she had made a horrible mistake. She had absentmindedly pulled on her pajamas, and then proceeded to the kitchen. In the light of the afternoon sun, she measured the amount of coffee beans, and tried to pay attention to the number of minutes she spent grinding them up. Afterwards, she dumped the pulverized legumes into the press, and then she used the lever to separate the bean particles from the liquid.

She then poured a mug, with a very precise amount of sugar and no creme, and stepped carefully to the office, where both the bed and her landlord waited. She set the mug down within arms reach, and headed to the ladder, for once uninterested in her score. She just wanted to rest.

Julius on the other hand, was more than a little appalled.

"Alice," The Clockmaker's voice was neutral. "Didn't I tell you to stop wearing that?" For a moment she looked confused, and then glanced down at her apparrel.

"Wait a second..." She trailed off, "Why is this...?" Hadn't she buried the thing in the deepest depths of the closet she now shared with Julius? Hadn't it been hidden away under his myriads of spare shirts? Apparently not.

While she'd been musing over this development, Julius had stood up and marched over to her.

Words could not express how much Ace's words had gotten to him.

 _You don't want her. So why not just let me try my luck?_

That phrase had dug itself into the recesses of his consciousness. Against his better judgement, Julius had been trying to get Alice to notice him. To notice that he wasn't that much older than her. That he was responsible and careful. That he was male. That he cared for her...

But no one saw that, not even her. If he didn't do something drastic...

She would be taken from him, and though it may have been strictly his arrogance talking, he thought he was the only one of the idiot Role-Holders capable of treating her correctly.

He viewed her as a person, not a toy, and he wanted more than anything for her to be happy with him, but before that could happen...

She needed to want him too.

So he approached her, and whirled her away from the ladder rungs. He pressed her up against the side of his work desk, and repressing all of his reservations, all of his fears, all of his cynical thoughts of "she will hate you for this", he cornered her. He had her attention entirely on him, and she looked at him with wide eyes. She was preparing for his next move, and he was mentally bracing himself for a slap to the face, but it didn't matter.

She was going to know how he felt. Right now. Before the chance slipped away.

He bent down and kissed her as forcefully as possible. He loved her. He knew that, and now she did too, the consequences be damned. He pressed his lips to her mouth, moving them over hers in a way that did not allow for her to react. He simply kissed her until she needed air, and he pulled away as she was growing tense from the lack of oxygen. He said nothing, and stared down at her, waiting for her reaction.

He thought he'd be more worried, but a sense of calm washed over him. He had finally done it. He'd kissed her, as he'd wanted to for so very long now. No matter what happened now, a piece of him would be forever content. In a way it was over, and he could finally let out the breath he'd been holding for so long. Even if she left and he never saw her again...he would know that he tried.

She gazed up at him owlishly, as if trying to process what, exactly, had just happened, then she smiled, and wrapped her arms around his neck. Perhaps there was hope for him after all.

He couldn't believe she had actually kissed him back.

 **/*\**

 **All done.**

 **-Static**


End file.
